


Transparency

by blueberrynewt



Category: Star Trek: The Original Series
Genre: Coming Out, Family, Gen, M/M, Misgendering, Multi, Trans Character, but it's not intentional i promise, except it's actually joey mccoy, he is trans you see
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2020-12-19
Updated: 2020-12-19
Packaged: 2021-03-10 23:47:09
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 1,520
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/28165719
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/blueberrynewt/pseuds/blueberrynewt
Summary: Leonard's weekly call with his child leads to some revelations.
Relationships: James T. Kirk/Leonard "Bones" McCoy/Spock, Leonard "Bones" McCoy & Joey McCoy
Comments: 13
Kudos: 60





	Transparency

**Author's Note:**

> this fic has been nearly-finished in my google drive for something like a year. i finally got around to finishing it up so now you get to enjoy it!
> 
> i have this headcanon about Vulcan culture being super trans-inclusive, because that's Simply Logical (TM). and i also started thinking about Jo being trans because there are so many fics where Bones calls his kid "princess" and stuff. which is great and sweet, but i got to thinking about how uncomfortable that would be if his kid was actually transmasc. and so this concept was born.
> 
> big big big shoutout to [Reyka_Sivao](archiveofourown.org/users/Reyka_Sivao) for her help figuring out the Vulcan phrases! thank you so much!
> 
> cw for everyone misgendering Jo before he comes out. he also misgenders himself once because that's just how it goes sometimes lmao

“Hiya, Jo!”

“Hey, Jo!”

“Good morning, Joanna.”

She grins at the three of them through the screen, hair tousled as though she's just gotten up. It's eleven AM in Georgia, but Leonard supposes that's what being a teenager is for. Lord knows he rarely crawled out of bed before noon when he was that age, if he could help it. And it's summer vacation for Jo, leaving her ample time to indulge her adolescent need for extra rest.

“Hi, Papa! Hi, Jim! Hi, Spock!” She looks between them. “So why am I talkin’ to all three of you this week? I don't think I've seen Spock in years.”

“It has been one year, four months, and eighteen days since we last spoke,” Spock supplies. “Your hair was considerably longer at the time.”

“Oh...yeah.” Her hand goes to her hair, which reaches just below her ears. “Trying somethin’ new this summer.”

Spock’s brow furrows slightly. “I fail to understand how the season —”

Jim pats his elbow and he shuts up.

“So?” Jo says again. “Is this an intervention? Or are you all just here to compliment my haircut?”

They exchange glances. Jim raises his eyebrows at Leonard and gives his knee a little squeeze under the desk. _Go ahead. You can do this._

“Right.” He clears his throat. “Well, you know Jim and Spock already — obviously. We've covered that.” _Stellar, McCoy. Real smooth._ “But, uh, what you don't know is that we're — we're dating. All of us. Together.”

He's not sure exactly what response he was anticipating, but it wasn't a pageant-worthy eyeroll and an exclamation of “ _Finally._ What on God's green earth — or, you know, God's dark and empty reaches of space — took y’all so damn long?”

Normally, Leonard might chide her (gently, and without any real intent — she's sixteen, after all) for swearing. Today he just stares at her, nonplussed. “What?”

“Well, come on, you three aren't exactly _subtle_. Okay, maybe Spock is, but Jim? Yeah, not exactly flyin’ under the radar there with the sappy smiles and googly eyes all the time.”

Jim has the grace to look a little sheepish, but then he ruins the effect by leaning in to plant a sloppy kiss on Leonard’s cheek. “You raised a smart kid, Bones.”

Jo groans and laughs. “So how long has this been goin’ on? Was it Spock who made the first move? I bet it was Spock.”

“Actually,” Leonard admits, rubbing the back of his neck, “it was me.”

“Really?” She claps her hands. “That’s fantastic, Papa. No offense, but you were gonna be my last guess. I'm so proud.” She wipes an imaginary tear.

Jim takes over then, hand still on Leonard’s knee. “Yep. Spock and I went on an away mission last month that went a little...awry.” He gives Leonard a guilty look. “Probably my fault. We both got out okay, but your poor father nearly had a heart attack worrying. So when we got back and he was sure we were safe, he gave us his usual dressing-down about risking our necks for no reason, and then happened to mention that he loved us both and couldn't live with himself if he lost us. And, well.” He spreads his hands. “The rest is history, as they say.”

“Mighta known you'd have figured it out before us,” Leonard grumbles. “My daughter, Joanna the Omniscient. We shoulda called you Sherlock.”

That gets an indulgent smile from Jim, but to his surprise, there's not a hint of mirth from Jo. Instead her face falls, and she tugs nervously on a strand of hair.

“Um, yeah. About that. I actually have some news, too.”

Leonard tries a reassuring smile. “Don't tell me _you're_ dating Sherlock Holmes. Way to show me up, kiddo.”

“I'm not a girl.” She — shit, he? They? They blurt it out all at once, like it's been sitting heavy on their tongue for the whole conversation. Maybe a lot longer.

He rallies quickly. “Oh. Dammit, I'm sorry, Jo — I mean — what name should I call you?”

They smile, a little hesitant but definitely there. “Jo is okay. Joey if you want somethin’ longer. I know it's not a whole new name or anything, but I haven't found anything else I really like, and Joey works.”

“Absolutely.” Leonard wishes he could reach through the screen and hug his wonderful child. “You don't need a whole new name if you don't want. Whatever’s comfortable for you, darlin’.”

“Joey’s nice,” Jim offers. “There's a character called Joey in this old television program from the end of the twentieth —”

“Yes, Jim, I have seen _Friends._ ” They roll their eyes again.

“The kids these days are all about turn-of-the-millennium media,” Leonard tells Jim. “You ever heard of somethin’ called Homestuck? Cause I have. For several hours. And this musical, _Hamilton_ , that's a big one. Real popular.”

Jim folds his arms and pouts. “It makes me feel so _old_ when you say ‘kids these days.’ I'm still in my prime!”

Leonard laughs at him. “You can keep tellin’ yourself that, but you're nearly old enough to be Joey’s father yourself. I'm afraid youth culture has moved on without you.”

“I liked all those things _before_ ,” Jim insists, then changes the topic. “So, Joey, can I ask about pronouns?”

“He/him,” Joey responds promptly. “I'm...not a hundred percent sure I'm a boy, but I'm definitely happier with those pronouns, so.”

“He/him it is.” Leonard smiles. “I'm so proud of you, son.”

Joey looks away from the screen for a moment, blinking rapidly. When he looks back at them, he says, “So you're all — okay with this?”

“Sweetheart, of course. I'm so glad you told us. I always love gettin’ to know more of who you really are.”

“That goes for me, too,” Jim puts in. “I'm flattered that you felt safe enough to share while I was here. You're a great kid, Joey.”

They all turn to look at Spock, who hasn't said a word in some time. He meets Leonard’s gaze and straightens very slightly. “I apologize for my silence, Joey. It is...difficult for me to grasp the significance of this conversation in the context of human cultural values.”

“So how would you treat it as a Vulcan?” Leonard prompts.

Spock’s eyebrow lifts a few millimeters. “On Vulcan, when an individual wishes to change their gender designation, they undergo a ritual called the _yeht-nam-naran_. It is not unlike the ceremony for welcoming a new child into the world. If the individual wishes to do so, they may choose a new name for themself. The ritual is followed by a celebration to welcome the individual into a new stage of their life. 

“On Vulcan, if you were to undergo the _yeht-nam-naran_ , your clan matriarch would welcome you thus: _Naglanshau ek’etek na’la yeht-nam t’du_. It means, approximately, ‘All here recognize your true being.’ Those assembled would then reply, _Naglanshau etek yeht’es_ : ‘We recognize the truth.’ The greeting also carries a connotation of gratitude for the gift of truth that the...transitioning individual has granted to those who know them, and a wish for others to see that truth as well.”

There are definitely tears on Joey’s cheeks now. “Wow. I — thank you, Spock. That means a lot.” His gaze shifts to the other two. “Thanks to both of you, too. You're all bein’ real cool about this.”

“Have you told anyone else?” Leonard can't help asking.

Joey tugs at his hair again. “Some people I know online. A couple of friends at school. Everyone's been okay so far.”

“What about your mom?”

He shakes his head. “We kinda had a fight.” He must see a dark expression cross Jim's and Leonard’s faces, because he adds hastily, “Completely unrelated. Just regular mother-daughter — I mean, mother-son stuff, I guess. I just don't really feel like talkin’ to her right now.”

“That's completely fair,” Leonard says gently. “You don't have to tell anyone you're not ready to tell. But you know that she'll support you, right? Joss and I don't have a great relationship, but her head's not so stuck in the last millennium that she'd want you to be anythin’ less than exactly who you are.”

“Yeah.” Joey nods and wipes at his cheeks. “Well, I — I gotta go. Thanks for the chat. And, uh, good luck with —” He gestures at them vaguely.

“Thanks, son,” Leonard smiles. “You too. Call if you ever wanna talk some more.”

“Have a great week, Joey,” Jim adds.

Spock just nods, but Joey’s smart enough to know what he means.

“Okay. Bye, y'all. I — yeah. Bye.”

When they've hung up, Leonard turns to his two new boyfriends with a sigh. “Well. Big news all around today. Thanks for bein’ so good with Joey.”

“Always, Bones. I meant every word I said. He's a good kid.”

“Yeah, he is.” Leonard gets to his feet with a groan. “Now scram, you two, I've got a hot date and I need time to primp.”

“You, primp? Here I thought you just rolled out of bed every morning looking this pretty.”

Leonard pokes him until he leaves.


End file.
